Yemen's Houthi Group Says Ceasefire To Start Dec. 14: Spokesman

A ceasefire is to take effect in Yemen Dec. 14 ahead of peace talks in Switzerland between Houthi rebels and the government. Above, a Houthi militant mans a machine gun mounted on a patrol truck in Yemen's capital of Sanaa, Dec. 10, 2015. Photo: Mohamed al-Sayaghi/Reuters

DUBAI (Reuters) — A ceasefire in Yemen's civil war will start Dec. 14, the eve of planned peace talks in Switzerland next week, the head of the Houthi delegation to the peace talks said Saturday.

"Based on what had been agreed upon, there will be a halt of the aggression on the 14th of this month," Mohammed Abdul-Salam told a news conference broadcast live from the Yemeni capital of Sanaa.

The United Nations has invited Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi's government and the Houthis to peace talks in Switzerland starting Dec. 15, after the sides agreed a draft agenda and ground rules for the talks.

Hadi's Prime Minister, Khaled Bahah, said Friday he was determined to end the fighting that had killed nearly 6,000 people since March and caused widespread damage to the economy and infrastructure.

Abdul-Salam complained that the United Nations had not taken into account all the remarks his group had made on the draft but said the group, officially known as Ansarullah, and its allies would try to press their demands at the talks.

"We are in constant coordination, together with the General People's Congress party, and we will all go with a national will aimed at stopping the aggression and lifting the siege," he told the news conference.

The Iran-allied Houthis describe military operations by a Saudi-led Arab alliance in Yemen as an aggression. The alliance says it intervened in response to a request by Hadi.